Archive for December, 2011

It’s New Year’s Eve so many of you are probably busy making plans for the evening ahead. Even pre-children I was never really a fan of heading out on New Year’s Eve, as everywhere was normally full to capacity which led to a most uncomfortable night out. These days I much prefer to entertain at home which suits quite well as there is no need to disturb the children’s routine. Continue reading »

I did promise you a break from my ramblings over Christmas but I can’t go cold turkey (geddit???) and not write something. It’s New Years Eve and for the first time in FIFTEEN years, The Hubs is off today. Most people would mark this momentous occasion by going out for a long healthy walk, perhaps a lunch somewhere in front of an open fire and visiting friends. Sod that, he yawned. We’ll have. Continue reading »

It’s time for a little retrospective on 2011, courtesy of Stitch and Bear…

Personally, 2011 was the year that I got back into blogging. Prior to 2011, Stitch and Bear had been a mishmash of topics. But once I returned from my 13 month stint in Amsterdam, I decided to focus purely on food matters, and more specifically restaurant reviews. I put my technical hat on and purchased the www.stitchandbear.com domain as well as fixing my Google ranking issue. Continue reading »

I hope you are looking forward to 2012, I know I certainly am. A new year always comes with the prospect of new opportunities and I’m looking forward to sharing my new year foodie adventures with all of you.
Thank you for your loyal support in 2011 and here are some of my foodie highlights for this year.
In January I started to write for The Westmeath Independent. Continue reading »

It’s New Year’s Eve so many of you are probably busy making plans for the evening ahead. Even pre-children I was never really a fan of heading out on New Year’s Eve, as everywhere was normally full to capacity which led to a most uncomfortable night out. These days I much prefer to entertain at home which suits quite well as there is no need to disturb the children’s routine. Continue reading »

I was in a pub in County Cork on New Year’s Eve 10 years ago when the euro was introduced in 2002. We were staying with some friends whose parents had a holiday home in Schull, and I remember there was a German woman sitting in the corner of the pub smoking a pipe. After midnight, when we paid for our pints with Irish pounds, our change was handed back in euros, the notes starch-crisp and the coins shiny, fresh from the mint. Continue reading »

I don’t know about you, but I seem to be incapable of EVER judging what size turkey to buy so that I don’t have a massive amount of it left after our traditionally Irish Christmas dinner. This year was no exception, the 14 pound bird was indeed too much, so I was left with about 5 pounds of cooked turkey! Now there’s only so much reheated turkey you can eat and after two days, one may get quite inventive. Continue reading »

This morning I wondered out loud on Twitter if a Toad-In-The-Hole is essentially the same as a Pig-In-A-Blanket? I then meandered into the kitchen and using a recipe I learned from The Butcher, baked up a mini tray of the very same Toads-In-The-Holes that were in question for my little farmer. When I logged back into the Twitterverse, I was dumbfounded by the flood of spirited responses to my porky little enquiry!
No one was having it. Continue reading »

Looking to kill a small child or perhaps you get enjoyment from watching other people cry. This has 3 different heat levels, from mild to extremely hot, thanks to the addition of habanero sauce.
Method

Place the butter and cider vinegar into a small pot, over a low-medium heat, stirring until melted.
Add the hot sauce and tomato puree and mix until combined.
*extra* If you’d like to turn the heat up, you can add 1 tbsp of Tabasco sauce. Continue reading »

Looking to kill a small child or perhaps you get enjoyment from watching other people cry. This has 3 different heat levels, from mild to extremely hot, thanks to the addition of habanero sauce.
Method

Place the butter and cider vinegar into a small pot, over a low-medium heat, stirring until melted.
Add the hot sauce and tomato puree and mix until combined.
*extra* If you’d like to turn the heat up, you can add 1 tbsp of Tabasco sauce. Continue reading »

Week Two of the free HYDROS bottles is here! Learn all about the HYDROS filtering water bottles and how you can win.
HYDROS has just launched their new Filtering Water Bottle with Side Fill™ innovation. This newly-enhanced bottle is the one and only bottle on the market that features a twist and turn spout that filters on entry. It truly makes filling, pouring and drinking fresh water simpler than ever.
These bottles are a cost-effective alternative to bottled water. Continue reading »

Do you have lots of holiday candy left over from all of your parties and presents? Keep reading to learn new ways to use these treats, and tell us the creative ways that you get rid of candy after big holidays!
With everyone gifting and receiving candy for holidays, there is probably no shortage of candy canes, chocolate, and other candies in your home. There are lots of ways to use these candies in more creative recipes, and we’re here to tell you how to do it! Continue reading »

Back in early December 2011, we found ourselves driving between Cork and Waterford. As we passed by Youghal, I saw roadsigns for Lismore, reminding me that I was yet to visit O’Brien Chop House (which has been open since 2009). Being a creature who demands immediate satisfaction in matters of food, we quickly decided that lunch in Lismore would be a very fine idea indeed.

Lismore is a beautiful town, sitting on the Blackwater river at the foot of the Knockmealdown mountains. Continue reading »

We had a magically multiplying turkey this Christmas. It fed 19 people and there was still some left. It made sandwiches and delicious turkey soup and there was still some left. Great slices of it were wrapped and given away and there was still some left. Much as I love turkey, there comes a point when it’s enough already!

After all the rich food of Christmas, anyone who makes me the simple treat of a fried egg sandwich gets huge brownie points. Continue reading »

Inevitable, really. Only a year ago I passive-aggressively ask the trade where the Thornbridge stuff is, and now there’s more of it coming in than I can keep up with. So, this is a clearance of some stuff that’s been sitting in my fridge for too long, plus some more recent acquisitions, all from the über-classy Derbyshire brewery.
I didn’t get Kölsch until I went to Cologne. Continue reading »

New Year’s Eve is partially about watching the ball drop and seeing good friends, but it’s also really important to provide great food and drinks! Here’s a list of appetizers and cocktails that we recommend for your NYE bash, big or small, casual or fancy schmancy!
Here are some fantastic appetizers to get you started! After the appetizer list is the drink list!
Cheesy Potato Skins – These cheesy potato skins make an amazing appetizer! Continue reading »

Sponsored Posts

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Every cook we know loves their iPad (or lusts after one) for clipping, reading and cooking from online recipes right in the kitchen. Well, Clickcase.ie has what may be the ultimate kitchen gadget for iPad lovers: the Speck Handyshell slots around your iPad 2 so it can be hung from any rack, drawer or cabinet knob, keeping your iPad at eye level and safe from spills and mess. Genius!

Clickcase, Irish retailer of brilliant iPad and iPhone accessories, is giving one crimble red Handyshell away to a FoodFight.ie reader just in time for Christmas. To enter, all you have to do is head over to the Clickcase Facebook page before December 8th and tell us why you love your iPad or iPhone in the kitchen!

This November The Great Irish Bake is back and Kitchen Hero Donal Skehan is helping out with sharing recipes and promoting the event. The Great Irish Bake is in aid of helping sick and seriously ill children get the treatment they need. Head over to The Great Irish Bake to register online and be in the chance of winning a trip to New York when you help raise funds for Temple Street Children’s University Hospital. The site also has hints, tips, recipes and all that goes with an event like this.

This is the Facebook for The Great Irish Bake and of course the Twitter hashtag is: #thegreatirishbake

The Great Irish Bake organisers have shared a recipe with us and also a picture of Donal Skehan with his kids from his first marriage. Some of this might be a lie.

The Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
2. In a standalone mixture beat together the butter and sugar. Add in the egg and
mix through.
3. Using a wooden spoon mix through the flour, baking powder, salt, mixed spice
and vanilla extract until you have a biscuit dough.
4. Turn the dough out on to a floured surface and roll out to about 1cm in thickness.
5. Cut out biscuit shapes, place on the lined baking tray, then using a smaller cutter
or a small knife cut out the center of each cookie.
6. Sprinkle the crushed sweets into the centre of the cookie and place in the oven
7. Cook in the oven for about 15 minutes.
8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before transferring to a wire
wrack.

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